The present invention relates to a decorative waterfall and more particularly to a decorative waterfall having a decorative image on a backboard which can be rapidly changed by removing the removable mounted backboard and also by changing a polymer film covering thereover having a decorative image thereon.
Moving water or waterfalls used as decorative elements in a home or public building are well-known. These include various types of fountains which can be small fountains placed on a table, large permanently installed fountains, or decorative waterfall devices attached to a building to produce the pleasant effects of falling water within the building. In some buildings, these are seen as water falling between two transparent glass plates. Typically, the water is collected in a pool at the bottom of the artificial waterfall and is pumped through a pipe for dispersion at the top of the waterfall to provide a continuous circulation of water. The freefalling water can be falling directly to the pool below or over a backboard into the pool.
The present invention relates to a decorative waterfall having an image displayed on a backboard behind the falling water and which backboard is rapidly removable from the decorative waterfall for changing the image thereon. The image may be changed by attaching a polymer film over the backboard with snaps or fasteners, which polymer film has a decorative image thereon. This allows the decorative image of the waterfall to be rapidly replaced and can, for instance, have a different image for different holidays, such as Christmas, Halloween or the like.
Prior art decorative waterfalls may be seen in the Nash U.S. Pat. No. 5,167,368 in which a decorative waterfall has a housing with a reservoir of water at the bottom of the housing and a pump for conveying water from the bottom reservoir to a top reservoir where the water overflows the top reservoir and flows down a front wall. The Dunn et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,747,538 is a decorative waterfall and also provides humidification in the building and uses a plurality of overlapping panels for the water to flow across. The Hones U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,070 is a decorative waterfall having a continuous flow of water which is illustrated having the water flowing over potted plants. Similarly, the Katzman U.S. Pat. No. 6,634,138 has a self-sustaining indoor waterfall planter.
The Formhals et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,445,322 is an apparatus for projecting water to form an insubstantial screen for receiving images thereon and thus includes a vertical sheet of water and an image projector directing an image onto the water. In the Wheeler U.S. Patent Publication No. 2007/0023032 and the A. J. Grossniklaus U.S. Pat. No. 2,503,945 and the Coughlin U.S. Pat. No. 6,901,925, each show a decorative waterfall combined with a fireplace. Decorative waterfalls which produce a water curtain can be seen in the Hayden U.S. Pat. No. 7,296,785 and in the Hones U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,382,520 and 6,152,381 and in the Hayden U.S. Pat. No. 7,344,124. Other decorative waterfalls may be seen in the Stukenberg U.S. Pat. No. 6,405,937 for a system of modular rocks with a waterfall and in the Maxwell U.S. Pat. No. 6,290,144 for a decorative waterfall system and in the Duback U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,142 for an aquarium and waterfall system.
The present invention, in contrast to the prior art systems, is for a decorative waterfall with a decorative image on a backboard behind the falling water. The backboard can be quickly and easily removed and replaced or the image on its surface changed. This allows for the changing of the image from time to time during the year. The image may be changed by simply replacing a removable polymer film cover having an image formed thereon which can be attached with fasteners. The polymer film can be attached to the backboard in a manner to direct the dispersed water over the backboard.